Family Issues
by btamamura
Summary: Reboot. Danger Mouse decides to get in touch with his old nanny, but the conversation does not go as hoped. At least he has Penfold to see him through the hurt. Slash. Dangerfold. Danger Mouse x Penfold. Contains mild homophobia and mentions of child abandonment. Rated to be safe. Prompt by Ladylesso.


**Disclaimer:** _I do not own_ _ **Danger Mouse (2015)**_ _or any canon characters. I don't own Danger Mouse's nanny or Fifi either. They are the property of their respective owners. I do own the mentioned Emma White._

 **Notes:** _Ladylesso **, a reader of my fics, had suggested writing a story in which Penfold and Danger Mouse's families don't take their relationship well at all. But, Penfold's parents canonically abandoned him. In the classic continuity (mentioned in the book**_ _The Danger Mouse File_ _ **by Brian Trueman), Danger Mouse was raised by a nanny due to his parents also being secret agents. So, this was the best I could do. Fifi was mentioned in the classic series though Danger Mouse hated talking about her.**_

 ** _This is Dangerfold, so the slash warning is there. After all, Danger Mouse and Penfold are fiances now! There is also mild homophobia and mentions of child abandonment._**

 _ **I hope you enjoy!**_

 ** _(Linebreaks hate me so I will use_** _DMEP_ ** _.)_**

DMEP

 _A rainy night in London, and our heroes, Danger Mouse and Penfold, can think of no better way of spending it than sitting on the sofa and looking through an album full of memories._

DMEP

"Oh, you were so cute, DM!" Penfold exclaimed as he beheld Danger Mouse's baby photo.

"What, I'm not cute now?"

"Eh? Oh, I mean you are..."

He chuckled. "Relax, Penfold, just teasing." He turned the page. "Ah, my first birthday."

"Were you trying to _eat_ the cake or _wear_ it?"

"Both, I imagine. I always was a creative mouse."

"But...where are your parents?" Penfold noted there was only one adult in the photo, and that adult had brown fur, not the same white as the mouse that held the baby form of his fiance.

"They had a mission that they, unfortunately, couldn't refuse. Well, Nanny saw to it I had a lovely day." He turned the page again. "See? We went to the circus!"

"Did you _ever_ get to spend time with them?"

He shrugged. "Sometimes."

"Did it ever bother you?"

"Mm...maybe twice or so. It was hard to look forward to celebrating Father's Day without my old man being there to be celebrated."

"What about Mother's Day?"

"That was easier. If Mother wasn't there, then it would be a day for Nanny."

They looked through more pages, Danger Mouse explaining each photo. Penfold frowned. "I remember when I wanted to adopt Emma you said she'd have to be minded by a nanny and would likely never see us. I know you'd told me in the past about your parents not being around as much, but I don't think I really realised what you meant until today."

"At least I had Nanny there for me." He shrugged again. "I started getting used to it after a while."

"You shouldn't have had to."

"...Penfold, it's interesting that _you're_ the one saying this when _you_ don't seem half-bothered by your own parents."

"Oh, you mean when they dropped me off and drove away?"

"When they _abandoned_ you. When your circus family abandoned you. Whatever happened on that barge, anyway?"

"Oh, after a few months, they left me on the dock and sailed away. They were so thoughtful, not wanting to risk taking a young chap out to sea."

 _Abandoned thrice and yet he acts as if it's nothing...? No. He may_ _ **act**_ _like it when talking about them, but he_ _ **shows**_ _it in other ways._

"DM?"

He sighed and closed the album. "You know, I haven't heard from Nanny for a year at least. She has my address."

"Really? When was the last time you wrote to her? What was it about?"

"As I recall, it was just after Christmas to inform her that mine went well and I had received the cookies she'd sent. I told her about us and...well, nothing in response."

Penfold's eyes widened before he climbed onto Danger Mouse's lap and wrapped his arms around him. "You don't suppose..."

"She should still be up, maybe I can call her." His iPatch was only patched in to those connected to the Danger Agency, or anybody who could hack into it. Instead of using that, he brought out his smartphone and dialled the number he knew by heart. He set it to a voice call, unsure of if his nanny would be able to respond to a video call. He set it on speaker so Penfold could also hear her.

DMEP

After a few rings, the phone was answered. "Hello?"

"Hello, Nanny, it's me."

"Danger Mouse?"

"Yes, Nanny, it's me. It's been a year since last contact. Did you receive my letter?"

"The one just after Christmas, you mean? Yes, I got that one."

"Did you try writing back?"

"How could I? I didn't know how to respond." Her tone had gone flat.

He tensed and was suddenly thankful for Penfold holding him. "What do you mean, Nanny...?"

"I'd been hoping for years you would get back with that charming Fifi, or maybe find some other lovely girl, but instead you tell me you've fallen for a bloke? There was no way I could respond to that in writing, so I just didn't."

"Do you mean that finding out I am with Penfold now...made you decide to cut off our correspondence...?"

"Hm, I suppose it can be put that way."

"But...but, Nanny, you _raised_ me, you always said you _loved_ me like a _mother_ loves her own _son_ , so why...?"

"I raised you to only be interested in girls. I have no idea what made you fall for that Penfold," she'd spat the name as if it left a bad taste in her mouth, "but I won't have anything to do with it. If you ever wish to talk to me again, then you'll have to leave him."

His face was stony. "I refuse to leave my fiance, and if you feel that way, then it's your loss, not mine. Penfold means the world to me, and if you can't see that...then I feel sorry for you."

"Fia...fiance? That does it, young mouse! I am afraid that as of this moment, I am cutting all ties with you."

"Very well, Nanny. Goodbye for good." He pressed the hang up button and stared at his phone.

"DM...?"

He dropped the phone to the sofa cushion beside him and tightly wrapped his arms around Penfold. While it was true two of his friends weren't entirely accepting of their relationship, neither of them had demanded to cut ties with him; if anything they wanted to make an effort to avoid that. But, it being the mouse who was there for him even more than his biological mother was who had, indeed, severed their connection, it brought him a great deal of pain.

So it was that Penfold was whispering assurances and vows to never leave the mouse who wept over the abandonment he'd faced.

DMEP

"Feel a little better, DM?"

"Maybe a little." He sniffed, but did not pull back from the embrace. "I can't believe she did that to me..."

Penfold huffed, feeling indignation on his fiance's behalf. "As you said to her, it's her loss. She cut ties with the greatest mouse in the whole world! Anybody who can't see that having you in their lives is an honour does not deserve to even know you!"

"You sound cross, Penfold."

"Too right I am! How _dare_ she? How dare she say for years that she loved you like a son, only to drop you like a hot potato the instant she found out you're with a bloke? That has to be the biggest whopper anybody has ever said to you!"

He sniffed again. "Penfold..."

"She just...cor, if I wasn't a gentleman, I would give her a good what-for! I don't care if she's a woman, _nobody_ gets away with hurting you!"

" _Penfold..._ "

"I am outright cross with her for hurting you, the mouse I love with all of my heart. It took everything to keep my trap shut when she said what she did, but...crumbs, I am angry!"

"Penfold, shush! You're rambling, dear. I appreciate the sentiments, but we're just going to have to move on."

"Move on...?"

"It hurts, but I'll get over it in time. If she truly felt that way about us being together, then I am glad she's no longer part of my life."

"You are?"

"After all, if she was still involved with that mindset, then she'd only hurt both of us repeatedly by insisting you leave me and I get together with some other lady she sets up." He pulled back. His eye was still damp with salty moisture, but he wasn't frowning. "I refuse to leave you, the one who has claimed my heart. I could never bear the thought of it happening, even if caused by outside influences."

"I feel the same, DM."

"Then, let's forget about my _former_ nanny and look to the future. But, before we do..."

"Yes?"

"Penfold, if your parents hadn't left you on the side of the road that day, what do you think they would've said about us?"

He thought about it. "I don't know, really. I mean, I remember they weren't keen on same-sex couples, but they could've changed their minds as the years went by."

 _I doubt it if they were willing to just abandon their young son simply because he was talkative..._

"But then again..."

"Hm?"

"If they hadn't left me there that day, and I hadn't been found by the circus, or the sailors, then there may be a chance we wouldn't be sitting here talking right now."

"You believe that?"

"I do. I may never have become the hamster I am if they hadn't left me." He cast a glance at the old photo album. "Will you be throwing that out?"

"Throwing what out?"

"The photo album. I mean, a lot of photos have her in them, wouldn't it hurt to look at them?"

"There are fond memories in there, Penfold. There will be pain when I see her, but...I can't just toss my past."

"What if we cut her out of the photos?"

"If you'll help me, I think that can be arranged."

"Okay then! I'll get my safety scissors while you prepare your Danger Scissors."

"Right!" He gave him a kiss atop his head. "Thank you, Penfold."

"What for?"

"For being you. You are an amazing hamster and I am lucky to have you in my life."

He stretched up and rubbed his nose against Danger Mouse's. "If anything, I'm the lucky one."

DMEP

 _And so we leave our heroes to cut someone out of photos to completely symbolise them being cut out of their lives. Though they knew there would be trials to face with their relationship, they are keeping an optimistic outlook on their future ahead. What will happen? Who knows? Maybe we'll find out in the next..._ _ **Danger Mouse**_ _!_

DMEP

 **After notes:** _ **I hope that was satisfactory,** Ladylesso **. But, everyone, please note that I do not like being requested to write stories as they can cause me too much stress. I didn't mind this one time as I had requested prompts on Tumblr and this counts as such.**_

 _ **The word's Danger Mouse's nanny said are similar to words I had heard when I came out to my aunt. Though we didn't sever our ties, in fact, we have a good bond and she is far more accepting, she did say about how she wanted me to get a boyfriend and get married to a guy, not a woman.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading! You don't have to review, but if you want to say something, please don't flame. Constructive criticism is welcomed as always.**_


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